The Journey of a lifetime
by TribalScribe
Summary: The story of three young wizards and their adventures, of a magical kind and more personal! All characters are mine except the references to any from Harry Potter, these are used with gratitude to J.K.Rowling. Please read and review I need to know if this
1. Chapter 1

**In Which The Legend of Arcane is Re-told**

George had only just sat down when Grimwald, his kestrel flew through the window and came to rest on the deep brown solid oak table. "How many times do I have to tell you?" George said with a stern voice. "Not on the table you'll scratch it, and you know what that means!"

George was referring to an incident only last year in which Grimwald had seen Wilbur, Ronnie's shrew, from some distance outside the common room window and had decided it was a good idea to dive-bomb through the window… an action which George, to this day, believes was motivated by little more than hunger! However the result of this call of nature was that Grimwald shot through the open window, and realised to his, and most notably Georges, utter dismay that he would simply not have the space to stop without taking some pretty dramatic precautions; otherwise the result would be to hit Professor McDonald fair and square in the midriff, as he had, by sheer misfortune, just burst through the door looking to be in an exceptionally foul mood! And so it was that Grimwald stretched out his legs and sunk his razor sharp talons straight into the previously perfect French polish finish adorning the surface of the table in the middle of the room.

Now that, as such would not have been quite so bad as George had just mastered the charm of rejuvenation, and had recently had cause to use it to prove his competence, but that's another story. However the fact that the table was literally under Professor McDonalds nose, and that he saw Grimwald impose the four and half foot scratches straight down the centre of the table, did little to improve his mood and, as is so often the case, someone was going to suffer the consequences!

After three weeks in detention, and missing out on two of the weekly social events held in the great hall, George had vowed never to allow that to happen ever again…. Not surprisingly, given that George had hoped to fan the flames of love with one of the girls from the next dormitory!

Grimwald held out one of his slender legs to allow George to untie a piece of parchment that had been fastened to it. George looked down at the parchment and saw it had been attached with a black ribbon, a sure sign that it was something official. "Probably an official warning" George thought to himself, referring to a slight indiscretion of his during the summer that resulted in his Aunt Priscilla being unable to control sixty percent of her bodily functions for something in the region of three weeks.

Having untied the ribbon, George was just about to unfurl the parchment when Ronnie came through the wall panel, "Wotcha George!" he said with a broad grin on his face, "Good summer?"

"Yeah not bad" George replied, and then added under his breath "in the end."

"Well yeah I did hear about your Aunt! Seemed a little harsh, has she recovered yet?" Ronnie said as he flopped down onto the leather settee, his chubby legs sprawling out in front of him.

Oh yeah she's fine, we just have to keep her close to a toilet!" Said George with an all too familiar mischievous grin.

"So what's that then? Your O.W.L.?" asked Ronnie referring to an Official Warning Letter from the Ministry of Magical Discretion Enforcement.

"Yeah probably…. Lets see what it says" and with that George unrolled the parchment.

It was with some surprise that they both looked at the parchment and after turning it around ninety degrees realised that it was in fact a map. It was a map of the school, not unusual in itself, except for the fact that this map seemed to be a living map… approximately A1 in size, it seemed to show a moving image of the school.

As George looked at the map he said "Bloody Hell Ronnie…." He tailed off as, to his astonishment he saw a small image of Ronnie appear on the map as the roof of the Dunstall dormitory opened up to reveal an image of the common room they were sat in

Ronnie looked up at George and said "George?" with that prompt, the image of the roof of the Dunstall dormitory opened for a second time and this time revealed George sat at the table.

Both Ronnie and George looked at each other and without saying another word, picked up the map and carefully rolled it up. They both turned on their heals and tore out of the common room and headed to the woods!

"What on earth is it?" Puffed George as they slumped down when they got to the clearing they had found two years ago. It was a totally covered area and even during the day there was little light penetrating through the dense canopy of foliage.

Even now during the mid afternoon the clearing was bathed in a twilight that gave the feeling that the trees were alive. As the trees moved in the uncharacteristically windy weather, at least for the time of year, they seemed to be trying to whisper an answer to Georges question.

"Well it's a map of some description but what I want to know is where it's come from and who sent it… and, more to the point, why?" Replied Ronnie who had sat down beside George. Ronnie was considerably more out of breath than George as he was not on his house broom racing team and was therefore more unfit, but he prided himself on his academic abilities, having got gold laurels in all his exams last year.

"It seems to work by saying the name of the person you want to locate!" Said George " but why send it to me?"

"One thing is for certain… we must keep this to ourselves, at least until we know more, otherwise we could end up letting it get in to McDonalds dirty bloody hands!" said Ronnie with a frown developing.

Both of the boys had fallen foul of the Charms Master on more than one occasion separately and considerably more than once together. The most recent occasion was when they had become curious about the girls training session for broom racing, and decided to do a little investigation on the matter. They had gone up to the west turret and hidden themselves in the back row of the spectator box. George had spotted Morgan, a senior girl from the next dormitory whom he had a considerable crush on, and was completely transfixed buy her shape which was being accentuated by the flowing robes being billowed in the breeze as she raced. So much so in fact, that they both lost track of time and were only distracted by Professor McDonald as he grasped them both by the shoulders and literally hauled them off to begin a month of detention cleaning out the Siberian Yak stables, quite probably the most foul job on the face of the planet… possibly any planet!

With that thought still haunting him, George gathered up the map and tucked it deep inside his deep maroon robes for safe keeping. They both sat in silence for some minutes trying to fathom out who… or what would send something like this… if only Grimwald could talk! It was Ronnie who broke the silence with a start as he reached into his robes and eventually, after a great deal of contortion, extracted Wilbur, who had suddenly decided to sink his teeth into one of Ronnie's roles of fat, probably because, as Ronnie had sat down, his considerable quantity had started to suffocate the poor creature.

"I thought I might find you two here!" said a very familiar voice. It was the voice of Jessie, their oldest friend at Hogwarts, very attractive girl who seemed to have as much talent for getting in to trouble as they did. "What ya up to?" she said as she flopped down, pulling her robes forward to loosen them away from her considerable bust.

As Jessie was such a close friend, so close in fact that she had joined them in enduring many of their detentions, they both started to tell her the story of the map. She sat quietly as the boys regurgitated the scant details and then showed her the map.

"Hmmm, why would anyone send you an Arcane map?" mused Jessie with a thoughtful look on her face.

"A what?" asked both of the boys in harmony.

"It's an Arcane map, a very old document which was supposed to protect its owner against perils and dangers. It helps the user to trace his enemies. Its sort of like a tracking device that muggles use in their spy movies, only far more sophisticated!" explained Jessie.

"How the hell do you know that?" asked Ronnie with a quizzical look creeping across his face.

With a very cute but devious grin on her face, Jessie began to mock Ronnie to the effect that, had he attended more of his lessons he would know this for himself. Despite the fact that Jessie had enlisted his help on a number of occasions, and did so on an annual basis in order to pass her exams.

"Legend has it that where an Arcane map falls into the hands of a new "owner", the owner would only be able to keep the map on completion of three magical tasks" continued Jessie, who was enjoying her moment of being able to get one over on her two best friends.

With that legend running through all their minds they got up and went up to the Great Hall for the Start of Term feast, which none of them would ever want to miss out on!


	2. Chapter 2

**In Which Jessie Has A Surprise**

That evening saw George, Ronnie and Jessie enjoy one of the most sumptuous feasts George could ever remember. The long oak tables were positively loaded to breaking point, and the Great Hall was adorned with all the banners of the dormitories… the scene was resplendent with all the opulence that Hogwarts could muster!

Ronnie, while in the process of devouring his seventh chicken leg glanced over at Jessie. "So what were you up to this summer Jess?"

"Not a lot really… we went off to Austria for a few weeks and then went to visit my Gran in Accrington" Mumbled Jessie while downing yet another jar of ginger beer.

"Wish I hadn't asked!" retorted Ronnie quietly.

George looked up from his wild duck and asked "so where do the Arcane maps come from Jessie?"

Jessie sat up a little straighter, and developed a somewhat self-satisfied look on her face as she prepared to demonstrate more knowledge on the subject. Ronnie couldn't help but wonder if he should simply stay out of the conversation for fear of suffering more mocking from Jessie, who was now obliterating a custard cream desert.

" Well they were first found in the middle-east, some where near Constantinople, and were taken along the trade routes of the great gemstones until they found their way to Europe and the royal courts of wizardry. From there it gets a little hazy but they are known only to be held by the greatest of Kings."

"So why the merry hell would I be sent one... Especially via Grimwald?" exclaimed George.

"Well… that's the interesting thing" Jessie said, clearly enjoying this situation now, as she was sat quite upright with her not inconsiderable breasts thrust out in an attempt to create an air of authority. " The map was said to have travelled the Gemstone trade routes with owners who were in grave need of help and assistance. It was often the case that once the peril had passed, so would the map to another owner."

A look of concern must have glimmered across Georges face, as Jessie suddenly went very quiet with the realisation f what she had just said. Needless to say, the gravity of the moment was completely lost on Ronnie as he broke the atmosphere with "pass me another custard cream Jessie!"

Suddenly a giant gong sounded and the entire hall fell silent, this was the cue for the headmaster to stand and address the students of the entire school.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome!" Began Tiberius, a big man of considerable age whose most striking feature could have been either his long white beard or his piercing green eyes. " It is with a mixture of pleasure and trepidation that I find myself with you in my charge again for the forthcoming term. Pleasure, because I am sure you will all find a great deal of stimulation in your day to day activities, pleasure because I have the favourable opportunity to look after your well being. Yet trepidation, as a result of my next announcement." With that, a grave look crept over Tiberius' face, he took a deep breath and began. "A long time ago, men of great wisdom made perilous travels to many far lands, a number of which are no longer in existence. During one such excursion, an eminent emissary called Jean Baptiste Devillier happened upon a document, which, at the time seemed to be of little consequence. It was handed to him by one of the tribal leaders of a remote region of a trade route as part payment for a magnificent sapphire. The sapphire has long since been lost to annals of history just as, or so it was thought, had the document. However, as you might guess, it is believed that the document has since again arisen to find the light of day." Tiberius paused, then continued. "I cannot go into the exact details of the document, except to say that it is a oddity of great curiosity to who ever it comes to rest with. However it is a fickle creature which needs to be treated with a great deal of care, and considerable skill."

By now the silence in the Great Hall was absolutely piercing, so much so that when one of the new first years broke wind, it broke the atmosphere and reduced the entire Great Hall to fits of laughter for a considerable time!

Once the laughter had finally subsided, there was only very little time for Tiberius to rattle through the rest of the standard domestic messages and warnings, the vast majority of which were not taken in by anyone.

A further gong signalled the end of the nights' proceedings and with that, all the students headed off to their respective dormitories.

As Jessie entered her dormitory, she could hardly help but think about the tale that the headmaster had just told in the Great Hall, and the striking coincidences with the Arcane map. A map whose very name indicates that it is known and understood by very few!

Jessie began to shed her robes, leaving her stood in her silky underwear. As she undid her bra she sat down on the bed and was surprised to hear a crumpling noise and feel a dry texture against her bare bottom. Jessie stood up and looked at what she had just sat on, a piece of parchment which had been carefully rolled and bound with a piece of black ribbon. She threw her bra on the bed and picked up the parchment, trying to think why she would receive an official letter… of any description.

She undid the ribbon and unfurled the parchment. It was some considerable before she could comprehend what she was holding. Jessie was stood looking at the oddly familiar view of a living map of the school. Jessie recalled that it was definitely George who had picked up the map in the clearing so couldn't understand why it was now here with her. Then as a gentle breeze from the slightly ajar window played across her nipples, quietly she said the word "George" and sure enough, just as she suspected the roof of the Dunstall dormitory opened up in the map to reveal that George was having a shower. Despite her feelings of concern and confusion, Jessie couldn't help but think that maybe the map had its uses!


	3. Chapter 3

**In Which A Duplicate Becomes More Confusing**

George had gone down to breakfast and was enjoying his second bowl of muesli,

When the smell of a subtle perfume wafted its way across to him. He knew exactly who it was and felt himself blush at the very thought of her. George had fallen for Morgan some years ago as a junior and his infatuation with her had grown ever since.

Once she had passed he looked up to see her walking away from him towards the drinks fountains. Morgan was a tall and exceptionally beautiful girl who hailed from the eastern climbs of the Baltic. Her long legs had George utterly transfixed as they rose to the hem of her pleated red tartan skirt, and carried on beyond.

It was only Grimwald dropping down to give him his daily mail that distracted him from his musing. The large kestrel dropped the single letter into Georges' muesli; much to George's annoyance as it was something that he had, on numerous occasions, remonstrated with Grimwald over. However little was going to put him in a bad mood and he simply took the letter and dismissed Grimwald with a wave of his hand. The kestrel squawked with indignation and then took off into the rafters to settle for the day.

Georges letter was bound with a familiar maroon ribbon…. That of Joseph, Georges step father, a good man, who had adopted George when he and Georges mother had got married. Joseph was a tall and strong man who had a wonderfully charismatic personality laced with an incomparable wisdom.

George opened the letter with excitement; he always loved the letters from Joseph as they often contained a cryptic message or code for him to crack.

He began to read the letter and soon realised that this letter had a deeper importance than many of Josephs other letters. He was giving George a warning that he had foreseen turbulent times and that if he needed any help he must contact him via Grimwald without delay.

George decided to keep the Arcane map to himself for the time being… it wouldn't be fair to worry Joseph with out knowing that there was good reason. Nor would he tell the others of Josephs letter either… not just yet!

He had just tucked the letter into his robes when Jessie came and sat down next to him.

"Morning Jessie, sleep well?" said George brightly.

"Hmmm I have had better nights sleep," replied Jessie. She then began to tell George about the map she had found last night on her bed… omitting some details of course, like the fact that she had spent some five minutes watching his image in the map taking a shower!

Georges' immediate reaction was to reach into the recesses of his robes to make sure he still had his map… and it wasn't long before he pulled the very edge from his robe to show that he still had it.

"Looks like we have both got the same thing…. But why?" said a very confused Jessie.

They both sat in silence as they ate, trying to fathom out what or who had sent them both the maps. They were both so deep in thought that they didn't even notice that Ronnie didn't show up for breakfast.

As they left for their first lesson, Ronnie walked down the hallway towards them and said excitedly " we have got to talk later…. Lets meet at recess!" and with that tore off to his first lesson.

Professor Wilson's potions class was their first of the term, a class they didn't mid as it often lead to some very funny incidences. Like the time when Professor Wilson, who was quite a prim and proper woman accidentally gave herself Tourrets syndrome and spent the next twenty seven hours uncontrollably uttering obscenities, the likes of which had not been heard for some time!

Professor Wilson was also a wonderfully gifted historian who's knowledge of anything pre sixteenth century was quite without equal amongst the academic staff.

"Shall we ask Professor Wilson about the maps?" asked Jessie quietly. "Only I noticed that there are a number of coincidences with what Tiberius was saying last night"

"Maybe, but don't let on that we actually have the maps ok?" replied George.

"The Arcane maps were a very powerful tool for the traveller and trader of gemstones." Explained Professor Wilson. "They had the ability to protect the traveller and it is reputed that they would continue to do so, on the provision that the holder completed 3 tasks…. And of course that the holder had all three parts of the map… otherwise each part of the map separately is of no more use than a marauders map!"

They both left the lesson with a mixture of emotions, they both felt relieved that they didn't have all three of the maps and so were not necessarily in danger, but at the same time they were still completely confused as to why they should separately have one of the maps?

At recess they went into the grounds and were enjoying the mid morning sun when Ronnie strolled over to them with leather bound folder.

"Guys you will never guess what!" Ronnie puffed as he trundled over to them both, again thoroughly out of breath. I woke up this morning and found this on my bedside table." Ronnie handed the folder to Jessie who took it and opened it… Jessie's face told the full story in an instant… Ronnie had been sent another map, but this time with a difference!

Ronnie's map was about two thirds of the size of the other two and had a leather bound edge!

On seeing this Jessie told Ronnie about the map she had received and after some thought said "We need to tell Tiberius, I am sure he was talking about the maps last night, so maybe he will know what this is all about!"


	4. Chapter 4

**In Which Tiberius Provides A Way Forward**

Oscar Tiberius, as described before was a large man with a very impressively long white beard and distinctly emerald green eyes. His long flowing robes of a deep midnight blue were trailing on the floor as he watched out of his office window. He could see three small figures in the grounds below talking in a most animated way and then suddenly head towards the main building, which housed, among other rooms, his office. He smiled to himself as they made haste up the pathway and then entered the portcullis to the main building. In his mind he counted down from thirty two to zero…. And as he uttered the word zero, there was a sharp rap on his door.

"Come in you three!" He said in a warm yet booming voice.

"How the hell does he do that!" exclaimed George quietly as he pushed the massive door and they entered the beautifully furnished office.

Tiberius turned and looked at the three students who had just entered with a rich warm smile and a gesture for them to be seated. They sat on the large leather sofa and immediately they felt as though they we being sucked into the soft cushions.

"So what can I do for you?" Asked Tiberius as if he didn't already know.

George then began to explain how he had come to be in possession of his map and then how the other two had done the same.

"And do you have them with you?" asked Tiberius thoughtfully.

All three took out their respective maps and put them on the table in the middle of the room. Tiberius picked up each in turn as he listened to each of the students elaborate on their situation. As he inspected each of the maps, the look of gravity on his face became deeper and deeper until finally he looked up and with a wave of his hand, silenced them.

"In 1492, in the city of Constantinople, there was an immensely powerful sorcerer named Kobe. Now, Kobe was an essentially good man with a very well developed sense of justice and righteousness. During his reign over his estate, Kobe amassed a huge number of Gemstones of all types and varieties and was often approached by stone traders from all over the known world. One particular trader, however, was somewhat less scrupulous than any of the others and in the course of a transaction he defrauded Kobe out of much of his fortune. In order to get his fortune back he had to give up a particularly prized possession. It was a sort of a marauders map…. I believe you have some experience with marauders maps?"

The three students blushed, as they recalled an incident, which had earned them a three-month period of detention, as a result of their less than discreet use of a marauders map.

The headmaster had taken his golden eagle Parsifal and sat down with him. Their affection for each other was a very apparent phenomenon.

"This map was an enchanted map with the ability to read its owners emotions and intentions. With that information, the map would endeavour to protect its owner against all perils. However with the realisation that he would have to surrender the map, Kobe enchanted the map… not for evil purposes; that was not in his nature, but to protect the map from fraudulent usage. So it came to be that if any owner wanted to ensure the protection that the map would afford, they had to prove themselves, this could only be done by the successful completion of three tasks."

"I thought that the map passed on to another owner when the danger or peril had passed , sir?" asked Jessie.

" No, not quite my dear." Replied Tiberius with a kindly smile. " The fact is that there is no documented record of any recipient of the map ever having successfully completed three tasks. But then there is no recorded occasion of the map ever having three owners either!"

"So you see, you three will now have to complete the three tasks… if you can complete them you will be bound for eternity by the map as its co owners!"


	5. Chapter 5

**In Which A Duel Ensues**

As the summer came to a close and the days became shorter, some pleasure was derived by the students from the thought of the forthcoming broom-racing season. Broom racing is a very skilled and often dangerous sport in which the participants are required to complete a course flying through hoops, in the shortest possible time, on the back of a broom. There are five hoops and the re are two types of win, a majority win where you complete three out of the five hoops and the decider where it all comes down to the last hoop! Not the easiest thing in the world to do given the width of your average broomstick, especially when the broomstick is travelling at something in the region of 150 miles per hour and your opponent is hurling a solid leather ball in your direction trying to unseat you!

George was Hogwarts biggest fan of the sport, and yet he felt a great deal of trepidation about this afternoon's race. The reason for this trepidation was actually his opponent. That in its self was odd because on more than one occasion George had been likened in his skill on a broomstick to the legendary Harry Potter, so surely he would fear very few if any opponents? That would be a very true assumption, and in fact it was not his opponent he feared, but the possibility of hurting his opponent. In this opening duel of the season George was to face none other than the girl he had spent the past three years with an indisputable crush on, none other than the exceptionally gorgeous Morgan!

Morgan emerged from her dressing room in the east turret at the same time as George did. She looked over to him and seemed to see his concern, it was almost as if she could read his thoughts. That might actually have been a possibility as Morgan belonged to a race of creatures known as Veela, an exceptionally attractive race of women whose appearance changed in its perception according to the person in who's view they were at the time. Therefore making them universally attractive!

But perhaps the more intriguing characteristic of the Veela is that they were all know to have a specific gift of a magical nature, and George had no idea what Morgan's gift actually was, so it was quite possible that she could have read his thoughts!

Morgan serenely walked over to George and looked at him with the most beautiful azure blue eyes. "Come what may in this duel I hope we might become friends." Said Morgan as she smiled and then bent over to give him a kiss on both cheeks.

" I would be so happy to be!" replied George with a lump in his throat.

With that, they both took their broomsticks and headed out to the arena.

The weather had taken a turn for the worst and was howling a gale. As soon as the two competitors walked out of the tunnel the rain was driven into their faces with a ferocious force that made their skin sting.

"Good luck my newest of friends" called Morgan as she took off into the gale to take her place at the starting ring.

George took off and followed Morgan to prepare for the start of the race. The low cloud and fog was billowing around both of them, and although Morgan was little more than a few metres away, George could only just make out her shape.

A loud bang accompanied by a massive flash of green and red lights in front of them, softened by the fog and cloud, signalled the start of the race and George was in no mood for hanging around in this weather, and within a second was hurtling towards the first of the hoops he had to fly through to complete the course. As he approached the first ring, George saw a round leather ball shoot across his path little more than a couple of inches from his face.

"Wow! Morgan is good at this," thought George as he turned to try to see where she was. He managed to spot her less than 20 yards behind him, and as he did so he saw her recover the ball and hurl it towards him in her second attempt to knock him off his broom.

George dropped the nose of his broom and made a sudden drop of altitude, which immediately took him out of the path of the leather projectile. As he did so, George looked up and behind him so see where Morgan was now positioned, and it was with some shock that he found himself face to face with another ball heading straight towards him, and this time it was too late for an evasive manoeuvre. The ball collided with him full in the face and knocked him round on his broom… so much so that he became unseated and had to swing round and grab his broom simply to avoid plummeting to certain injury!

As he grabbed on to his broom, George was gripped with fear as he realised that he would not be able to grip easily in this weather because of ice forming along his broom, and already his hands were slipping along the shaft!

George tried desperately to tilt the broom towards the tail end so his hands would not slip off totally. The broom was not going to cooperate with any speed and as George looked round he saw the first hoops heading his way. As he tore through it, still hanging from his broom it burst into a bright red ring of fire to signal that it was he who had conquered that particular hoop. "YES! One nil!" thought George. " Now all I have to do is get back on this bloody twig!"

Almost as if the broom could read his thoughts, it dropped altitude sharply, which had the effect of swinging George back upwards, which enabled him to get a leg over his broom and become re-seated.

Safely back on his stead, George looked around to see Morgan literally neck and neck with him as they both hurtled to the next hoop. George pulled out his leather ball. As he did so he could feel it twitching, ready to race out to distract its opponent, the lovely Morgan!

George hurled his ball towards Morgan, and saw it do exactly as he had intended. The leather ball had made no contact but had caused Morgan to have to pull up sharp, a result of which was that George was able to go into the lead and pass the second hoop turning it into a bright red circular inferno.

The third hoop was only a very short distance from the second and it was not long before George had lit the sky red yet again to claim his victory for having got three out of five hoops and therefore a majority win.

As he gently touched down on the grass below, George realised that he had blood pouring from his nose, which was now staining his robes. Morgan touched down before him and as she looked over to him, a look of shock came over her. She ran over to George and held her hands to her face. " I am so sorry I didn't realise I had actually hit you George!" Said Morgan with a voice of real concern.

"No don't worry, its all part of the game." Replied George. "But I think I had better get to the infirmary!"

With that Morgan took charge of the situation and began to lead George off to the main building. Jessie and Ronnie ran over and started to congratulate George on his win when they saw his face. Jessie said "Oh my god George why do you do this?" and put her arm around him, not seeing the scornful look that was aimed her way by Morgan.

"Ah its all in the game Jess!" said George "Matron will have me fixed up in no time!"

At the infirmary George had gone in to see the matron and the other three were sat outside in the waiting room.

Ronnie broke the silence and said "I really do think that duels should be called off in this sort of weather, its just to dangerous to judge your aim."

"If of course the aim is not intentional!" mumbled Jess, with a pointed tone in her voice.

"And what was that supposed to mean?" retorted Morgan with indignation.

"Well its amazing what lengths some people will go to win" said Jess staring Morgan in the eyes.

Morgan sat up straight and thrust out her chest with anger. Ronnie couldn't help but notice that in her saturated robes, Morgan had not worn a bra. "I would never hurt an opponent in a duel, much less one that I…" Morgan trailed off and then ran out of the waiting room audibly sobbing.

"Bloody hell Jess, there was no need for that!" exclaimed Ronnie

"Well George has never been hurt in a duel before!" replied Jess. "Doesn't it seem odd that, the first time he duels Morgan she puts a ball fair and square into his face?"

Just as Jess had said this, the door opened and George emerged with a broad grin on his face. The matron had, as always worked her magic and fixed him up as good as new.

"Where's Morgan gone?" asked George.

"Oh she had to go and get changed." Said Ronnie quickly seeing that Jess had gone a scarlet red colour.

"Well let's get back to the dorm… I want to get changed!" said George with a distinct look of disappointment.

The three of them then went back to the dormitories.

Ronnie and George were deep in conversation about the duel and hardly noticed that Jess had disappeared off to her dormitory rather quickly.

Jess stood in the shower cubicle and unbuttoned her robes letting them slide from her shoulders to reveal that she had not worn any underwear. She turned on the shower and let the warm water play on her shoulders and down her back.

Deep in thought she absent-mindedly let her hands stroke over her ample breasts as she thought about the one person whom she had ever really felt anything for. As she stood under the water, her dampness increased not just as a result of the shower, and as her hands strayed further down she uttered a moan that only one boy could raise from her.


	6. Chapter 6

**In Which Everyone Takes Stock**

George slept badly that night. He couldn't stop thinking about Morgan and the duel. For once in his life he simply couldn't believe how hollow the victory really was. He tossed and turned in bed until he eventually reached over and turned on his light. The Arcane map was there on his bedside table, just as it had been for the past two days.

He couldn't help but fee a bit upset at the fact that Morgan had simply left him at the infirmary, or so he thought… he didn't know anything of the argument that she and Jess had only moments before he had returned to the waiting room.

After some moments staring out of the window, he grabbed his cloak and decided to go for a walk. He left the dormitory and randomly walked down the corridors.

It wasn't long before George found himself outside Jess' dormitory and noticed that the light was on. Gently he pushed the door, just enough to see if it would open. Silently the door glided open and Jess looked around from her desk where she was sat.

"Oh hi George!" said Jess as she snapped shut a book. "I was just doing a bit of study."

"Jess, sometimes you really do make me wonder!" said George with a broad grin on his face.

Jess stood up to face him and for the first time ever he noticed her incredible figure accentuated by the light night robe she was wearing loosely. It looked for all the world to George as if she was not wearing anything else underneath.

" I was just tossing and turning in bed and ended up coming for a walk." Explained George.

"That's cool… want a ginger beer?" said Jess as she went over to her cupboard and produced two bottles of their favourite drink. George took one from her and said "god I wish I know what these maps had in store for us!"

" I have no idea… all I know is that I just don't want anybody to get hurt!" replied Jess as she looked into Georges eyes somewhat pointedly. She walked over to her bed and lay down and as she did so, her robe fell open just enough to confirm to George that indeed, she did not have anything on underneath her robe.

"George I can't help but worry about the broom racing… you could have been killed today!" said Jess in a low caring voice. " I really do wish you wouldn't duel."

"Ah Jess its all good fun, I have never been really hurt have I?" replied George with a smile on his face.

Jess looked at George and couldn't help but think how good looking and debonair he was. He made her positively tingle!

"No true but I just wouldn't want to see you get hurt, and yet today you very nearly were." As she said this Jess leant up on her elbows and George was momentarily entranced by her breasts which were now being pushed together, so much so that he sat down on her desk chair to avoid being too obvious in his arousal.

"I know, but Ill have to give up when it comes to exam time… I wont be able to spare the time, Ill need it to study. I am not Ronnie you know!" said George referring to the fact that of the three of them Ronnie was the most intelligent by a considerable margin.

" Well then for once in my life Ill say that the exams can't come quick enough!" said Jess dryly with a grin.

On that note George said that he really ought to head back and left quietly. Jess looked after him with a thoughtful look on her face.

Their conversation played on Georges mind as he quietly crept back to his dormitory. As he got back into bed it occurred to him that he was one very lucky man to have such a caring and concerned friend as Jess. Yet the fact that Morgan had gone from the waiting room, that afternoon still hurt him.

The next morning Ronnie was first down to breakfast, a highly regular occurrence, and was tucking in when Jess walked over and with a chirpy voice said "You'll get fat you know!"

"Never mind. Its not as if anyone will notice any difference!" replied Ronnie who seemed to be in a bad mood, which really was a quite unusual occurrence.

"Hey what's up Ronnie?" said Jess with concern.

"Ah its nothing, I am sorry Jess, I didn't mean to take it out on you." Sighed Ronnie.

"Come on Ronnie we have been friends for far too long… tell me what's wrong." Said Jess supportively.

" Its nothing really, I just sometimes wish I was like George, you know, more popular." Mumbled Ronnie.

"Oh and more stubborn and at times downright stupid?" replied Jess, thinking of George last night in his robes.

"Yeah but you saw the reaction he got from Morgan, she was really nice to him. I mean I know we were all concerned but… well you know?" said Ronnie

"She bloody well should have been concerned! She very nearly killed George! Retorted Jess, swearing uncharacteristically.

"Hmmm but she was really concerned for him… I recon she is into him, you know." Said Ronnie with a sad voice.

"Listen Ronnie, she was only concerned for him because she didn't want to be seen to be the criminal for hurting George, she doesn't care about him at all!" said Jess angrily.

"Wow Jess you really got it in for her!" said Ronnie with surprise.

"Well do you blame me? She could have killed our best friend!"

At the point Morgan came into the great hall and sat down. She looked magnificent in her robes and this did not escape Ronnie's notice. He couldn't help but gaze over at her.

"Oh For gods sake Ronnie!" fumed Jess. And with that she got out and stormed out of the hall to her lessons.


	7. Chapter 7

**In Which A Challenge Becomes Apparent**

Ronnie had sent a message home, via Grimwald, a number of days earlier and had already received a reply, yet George was sat in his dormitory thinking he had not seen him since he had set off. "Probably got hungry on the way and ate so much he's too heavy to fly" he mused.

Just then Ronnie came in and was looking a little bemused, not only had he had his 3rd official warning letter of the term, this time for setting alight professor Wilson's robes, but he also hadn't seen Wilbur for a considerable time.

On hearing that Grimwald as also absent Ronnie could not help but wonder if Wilbur had met his maker, and guilty conscience accounted for Grimwalds absence. A point that George hotly disputed!

Just as they were discussing the possibilities of what had happened Jessie burst in to the dorm, utterly out of breath, and pointed to the window, struggling to tell what she was pointing to. Both of the boys looked out of the window and were stunned to see what was before them.

George's dorm overlooked the broom racing arena and in amongst swirling clouds, mist and driving rain they saw Grimwald, Wilbur and Jessie's cat Tabitha, all suspended in the rings which were sparking, threatening to burst into flame!

Without another word they grabbed their brooms and ran out to the arena.

George yelled "each go for your own, it's the quickest way or they will get burnt!" and with that he took to the air. George knew all to well that the burning rings were quite capable of incinerating the animals, on any number of occasions he had had, at the very least, singed robes.

George had a distinct advantage over the others in that his flying skills were considerably better but even so, in this weather, grabbing a kestrel out of thin air was going to be a challenge! As he climbed towards the middle ring containing Grimwald a flash of lightning carved its way across the sky almost hitting Jessie, George flinched as she darted out of the way. He looked back over his shoulder to see Ronnie speeding up to catch up with him.

George headed towards the ring and as he did so, he saw a halo surrounding the ring and realised that this may not be as easy as he first thought; it was not going to be simply a case of getting Grimwald as he flew through the ring! Then as he saw Jessie approach the ring containing Tabitha, he saw a similar halo around hers, but as she approached the halo, it seemed to warp into a face. Needless to say this scared the living daylights out of Jessie and she pulled away.

Beside him, George heard Ronnie yell, "it's bloody alive!" Ronnie had caught up with the other two just in time to see the ghostly image warp into being and then back again, and was now about as white as a ghost with a bad case of anaemia.

George approached the ring he was heading towards and the halo surrounding it began to warp into a face, just the same as the other had done. But this time it seemed to be a distinctly female face, a fact that did not escape George's attention.

He yelled to Jessie to approach her ring, the look on her face really had a tone of "bugger off you nutter" but none the less she trusted George and did as he asked. As she approached her ring again the halo warped into the face they had seen earlier but it was distinctly male, and somewhat familiar to George.

George called to Jessie to come back and motioned through the mist to Ronnie to come over for a plan. The three of them huddled, well, as much as you can when you are sat on a twig in forty mile per hour wind with mist swirling round your face.

"These halos are warping into our faces!" yelled George through the wind.

"I think it is the halos that are holding our hostages so we need to find a way of defeating the halos and then collecting the animals!"

"Well let's try to dispel the halos." Yelled Jessie, and with that she shot off towards her ring. As she approached the ring the others saw her pull out her wand as the halo again warped into a face… this time obviously the face of George!

As Jessie saw who the effigy was of she pulled back and stopped, staring in disbelief.

Jessie has stopped dead in her tracks and was staring at the face which had evolved before her. "If I dispel that effigy will it hurt George himself?" Jessie thought.

As she looked back at George, he urged her to go ahead and to try to dispel the face. Urged on by George she raised her wand again and from the distance behind her the boys both saw a pale green charge emminate from her wand and snake its way towards the face.

For George time slowed into slow motion and then as the charge finally landed on his effigy between his eyes, he felt himself thrown forcefully from his broomstick and before he knew it he was hurtling towards the ground.

Jessie saw the face dissolve in front of her face and with that she also saw her Tabitha suddenly fall towards the ground. In the flash of an eye she dived towards Tabitha and quickly caught up with her, grabbing her by the scruff of the neck and bundling her into her chest and to safety.

George on the other hand was fairing a little less well. He was accelerating towards the ground with every foot he fell. What he didn't see was that Ronnie had dived after his broom, caught up with it and had hurled it into Georges path. It was only at the very last second that George caught sight of the speeding shaft and grabbed hold of it,

pulling himself to safety.

As he climbed back towards the others George couldn't help but think to himself what a bloody close thing that was.

When he got back with the others, Jessie, who had joined them after her ordeal, threw her arms around George and sobbed. George reassured her and said that he would go next to save Grimwald.

This time and the next Jessie and Ronnie knew what to expect so were far quicker to save each other. None the less when they got back down to safe and solid ground they all agreed that they would have to stick together in any future occurrences!


End file.
